Portrait of grief is people's pick

Visitors to the Art Gallery of New South Wales have picked Jenny Sages's self-portrait as their favourite Archibald finalist.

After Jack has won the 2012 People's Choice Prize, worth $3,500.

Sages has been a finalist for Australia's top prize for portraiture 20 times and was this year's runner up.

In 2011, her entry depicted her husband Jack in the last year of his life.

"I lost my husband Jack having shared 55 years together ‚Äď he was my rock. Anything else I would paint for the Archibald seemed trivial to me, hence my self-portrait called After Jack," Sages said in a statement.